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United States Patent | 5,327,488 |
Garland | July 5, 1994 |
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for accessing a service bureau or utility via a telemetry call from automated customer premises equipment, such as device state reporting or alarm equipment, without permitting features assigned to the associated customer to interfere with that call. Customer features such as call waiting are canceled for the duration of the telemetry call and are reactivated after the call has been terminated. Advantageously, access from the customer premises equipment to a service bureau or utility may be provided over a telephone line without limiting the customer's choice of telephone features.
Inventors: | Garland; Stuart M. (Morton Grove, IL) |
Assignee: | AT&T Bell Laboratories (Murray Hill, NJ) |
Appl. No.: | 855997 |
Filed: | March 20, 1992 |
Current U.S. Class: | 379/215.01; 379/106.01; 379/244; 379/246 |
Intern'l Class: | H04M 003/42; H04M 011/00/.3/00 |
Field of Search: | 379/40,51,142,201,243,244,245,246,106,107,215 |
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Foreign Patent Documents | |||
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2166625 | May., 1986 | GB | . |
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______________________________________ Feature Action ______________________________________ Cancel Call Waiting Activate Dial Call Waiting Cancel Automatic Recall Cancel (last outgoing) Reverse Billing Activate Audible Message Waiting Deactivate (Stutter Dial Tone) Screen List Blocking Deactivate NPA Code Restrictions Deactivate ______________________________________